Artificial Intelligence
AI Chatbots and the Humans Who Love Them
Humans are building meaningful relationships with AI chatbots. What will the consequences be?
Stories by Sophie Bushwick
Artificial Intelligence
What You Need to Know about GPT‑4
The AI GPT-4 has emergent abilities—but that’s not why it’s scary.
Engineering
The NYPD’s Robot Dog Was a Really Bad Idea: Here’s What Went Wrong
Design, context and timing influence whether humans embrace a robot or reject it
Robotics
Bizarre Material Combines the Best Traits of Gel and Metal
A new material was used in a simple snail robot, but it could one day make artificial nervous systems for more complex machines
Artificial Intelligence
Squeak Squeak, Buzz Buzz: How Researchers Are Using AI to Talk to Animals
The burgeoning field of “digital bioacoustics” is helping us understand animals like never before.
Artificial Intelligence
What the New GPT-4 AI Can Do
OpenAI just released an updated version of its text-generating artificial intelligence program. Here’s how GPT-4 improves on its predecessor
Materials Science
Controversy Surrounds Blockbuster Superconductivity Claim
Will a possible breakthrough for room-temperature superconducting materials hold up to scrutiny?
Mental Health
A Four-Day Workweek Reduces Stress without Hurting Productivity
The results of a test involving dozens of employers and thousands of employees suggests that working only four days instead of five is good for workers’ well-being—without hurting companies...
Aerospace
Sorry, UFO Hunters—You Might Just Be Looking at a Spy Balloon
From space aliens to foreign surveillance, we spoke to experts to find out what’s really going on with the balloon brouhaha.
Artificial Intelligence
AI Outraces Human Champs at the Video Game Gran Turismo
The program also challenges certain assumptions about self-driving cars
Defense
Why We’re Suddenly Spotting Spy Balloons
Every question we have about the airborne objects that may or may not be spying on the U.S.
Animals
How Scientists Are Using AI to Talk to Animals
Portable sensors and artificial intelligence are helping researchers decode animal communication—and begin to talk back to nonhumans
Defense
Chinese Spy Balloon Has Unexpected Maneuverability
An expert explains why it’s so odd that the suspected Chinese spy balloon can change course
Privacy
FBI Takes Down Hive Criminal Ransomware Group
A cybersecurity expert explains how the FBI’s operation against the ransomware group Hive will impact the rest of this criminal industry
Engineering
Mighty Morphin’ Turtle Robot Goes Amphibious by Shifting Leg Shape
A turtle-inspired robot can morph its legs to move from land to water and back
Artificial Intelligence
ChatGPT Explains Why AIs like ChatGPT Should Be Regulated
We asked the text-generating AI ChatGPT to talk about its own flaws
Artificial Intelligence
10 Ways AI Was Used for Good This Year
Artificial intelligence can improve health, protect biodiversity and even write wine reviews
Privacy
What You Need to Know about Iran’s Surveillance Tech
Scientific American technology editor Sophie Bushwick explains how Iran is using surveillance tech against vulnerable citizens.
Policy
The Most Urgent Science, Health and Climate Issues in the 2022 Midterm Elections
The midterm elections have high stakes for issues such as abortion rights, pandemic funding, climate change and other fundamental policies
Privacy
How Iran Is Using the Protests to Block More Open Internet Access
The Iranian government is taking advantage of Internet shutdowns to push citizens onto a local intranet that is vulnerable to surveillance and censorship
